Sound proposition: Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie opens

After 14 years and €865m (£750m), Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie will officially open its doors on 11 January with the launch of the venue's new musical programme.

Designed by renowned Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, the building is set to be become one of the city's defining landmarks. Fronting on to the Elbe and surrounded on three sides by water, the new construction, which houses three state-of-the-art concert halls, a hotel and public plaza among its many amenities, is a bold juxtaposition of old and new, demure and daring. The imposing modern glass structure, which extends 360ft into the sky, is perched atop the Kaispeicher A, an unassuming brick warehouse built in the 1960s once used for storing tea, tobacco and cocoa until the turn of the century. It now contains parking for the venue. The two meet 120ft above ground, where a large public viewing platform on the central deck offers unbeatable panoramic views of the city.

Inside the designs are just as ambitious. At its heart is the Grand Hall, where the 2,100 seats are arranged around a stage in a formation reminiscent of a vineyard, ensuring no member of the audience is more than 100ft from the conductor. Close attention has also been paid to creating perfect acoustics; the architects worked with sound specialist Yasuhisa Toyota to make a special wall and roof structure – nicknamed the White Skin – comprised of 10,000 individually shaped gypsum fibre panels designed to distribute sound optimally around the room.

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It will be put to the test with the opening concert on 11 January, the start of a three-week celebratory festival with a line-up featuring leading instrumentalists including Yo-Yo Ma and Brad Mehldau. Throughout the year a diverse mix of world, jazz, electronic and pop music will join the classical programme, led by the resident NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra.

elbphilharmonie.de